I can see what you were doing, but not an image I can easily connect with as is. It seems more static than your discription, so maybe I don't get it.
I'd crop right down, tighter, eliminating as many distracting elements as possible, and concentrating on the identified dynamic between the subjects. Shame there is so much background clutter - it distracts a bit.
However, a nice observational "life" shot.
Example below (you know how I like to crop...)!
Cheers
Ivan
5 comments:
Hi Ivan,
I know what you mean by not getting it. Perhaps you had to be there...?
I wanted to keep the parts of the tree in because I felt as though it framed the image a little. Particularly the sculpture. But there is a lot of clutter in the background.
Damian
Hi Damian,
I think the tighter cropping has improved it - although you're unfortunately losing quality now because of the high ISO. I'd maybe be tempted to either burn in or clone out the edges of the doors and the door handles because they invade the space between the two subjects too much.
Unfortunately, really, this is only going to be a good image by walking over there and taking the shot with a wider lens. As Robert Capa said: "If your pictures aren't good enough, you're not close enough."
I find this pretty nerve-wracking which is why I don't do it often: the speaker at the first Camera Club meeting I attended (one which Ivan missed) used "Excuse me, I'm doing a City & Guilds evening course in photography - do you mind if I take your picture" as his lead-in. I suspect that she mightn't have been so keen to be photographed smoking, but you've done the hard, creative work by identifying a good subject and another, equal subject to interact with.
On reflection, I prefer your crop to Ivan's, Damien - I'm not so sure it needs the framing from the tree, but I think his puts the subjects too close to the edge of the image - there's not enough room for them to "move".
Chaps
I would have liked a wider crop too - they are close to the edge. However, I was fighting to eliminate the distracting peripheral elements and may have gone too close.
Like you, I never ask someone if I can take their photo, but it is useful to have some kind of lead in line to get such a request off the ground...
A longer zoom would be v useful in these circumstances for street candids.
Ivan
HI all,
Thanks for the comments. Its great to see the blog come alive again. I need to make more of an effort to take advantage of this and to make my contribution.
Two points. First, I also prefer mt crop but Ivan sums it up by saying that a longer zoom is required. I think that is what was needed here. Second, it was a moment in time. The situation occurred, I saw it, grabbed it, and then it was gone. I think walking over there would have lost the moment.
Thanks again for your comments.
Damian
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